Lightweight corrugated pallet

ABSTRACT

A pallet is disclosed in which the load is carried on a surface formed, at least partly, by a corrugated panel which may be of fiberboard or other construction. The corrugations of the panel may be partly or completely filled on one or both sides with rigid plastic foam, or other organic or inorganic compound, including the filling of strips at spaced points along the major surfaces of the panel, the strips oriented at right angles to the corrugations. Support members in the form of spaced runners or posts are provided to offset the panel, which constitutes a deck, from the surface against which the pallet is to rest, or from the bottom wall of a container. The spacing of the support members themselves, and the spacing they afford between bottom support surface and panel, is sufficient to permit four-way entry of the prongs of a pallet-lift or fork-lift truck. Rigid plastic foam extends into the corrugations of the panel at the points of fastening of the support members thereto, and if desired, in any or all of the remaining flutes of the corrugated panels as required to provide the strength needed for the particular pallet use.

United States Patent [191 Brown [4 1 Jan. 21, 1975 1 1 LIGHTWEIGHTCORRUGATED PALLET 22 Filed: Sept.21,1971

211 App]. No.: 182,508

Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation-in-part of Ser. No.2,774, Jan, 14,

1970, abandoned [52] US. Cl. 108/51 [51] Int. Cl 865d 19/00 [58] Fieldof Search 108/51-58 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS1,359,835 11/1920 Pease 108/51 1,770,614 7/1930 Hennessy 108/582,501,506 3/1950 George 108/52 2,542,129 2/1951 Fletcher M 108158 X3,026,544 3/1962 Versicke et a1 iiiiiiiiiiiiiiii 5/361 11 X 3,187,6896/1965 Hess 108/58 3.275.131 9/1966 Erickson 108/51 X 3,307,504 3/1967Cloyd et al. 108/58 3,380,403 4/1968 Sullivan 108/51 3,405,666 10/1968108/58 3,434,434 3/1969 108/58 3,481,285 12/1969 108/58 3,509,991 5/1970Hurst 108/53 11 X 3,511,191 5/1970 Barry, Jr. et a1 108/58 FOREIGNPATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,915,134 3/1969 Germany 108/158 PrimaryExaminer-Paul R. Gilliam Assistant ExaminerG. O. Finch Attorney, Agent,or FirmWigman & Cohen [57] ABSTRACT A pallet is disclosed in which theload is carried on a surface formed, at least partly, by a corrugatedpanel which may be of fiberboard or other construction. The corrugationsof the panel may be partly or completely filled on one or both sideswith rigid plastic foam, or other organic or inorganic compound,including the filling of strips at spaced points along the majorsurfaces of the panel, the strips oriented at right angles to thecorrugations. Support members in the form of spaced runners or posts areprovided to offset the panel, which constitutes a deck, from the surfaceagainst which the pallet is to rest, or from the bottom wall of acontainer. The spacing of the support members themselves, and thespacing they afford between bottom support surface and panel, issufficient to permit four-way entry of the prongs of a pallet-lift orfork-lift truck. Rigid plastic foam extends into the corrugations of thepanel at the points of fastening of the support members thereto, and ifdesired, in any or all of the remaining flutes of the corrugated panelsas required to provide the strength needed for the particular palletuse.

5 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures PAIENIEB JAN 2 1 I975 sum 1 or 5 v mvzmonDWIGHT C. BROWN PATENIED M21 I975 SHEET 2 OF 3 INVENTOR DWIGHT 0. BROWNPATENTEU JANZ I I875 SHEEJ 30F 3- INVENTOR DWIGHT C. BROWN LIGHTWEIGHTCORRUGATED PALLET CROSS REFERENCES This application is a continuationin-part of Ser. No. 2,774 filed Jan. 14, I970, and entitled LightweightCorrugated Pallet now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The presentinvention relates generally to pallets for shipping and storage, andparticularly to pallets comprising corrugated panels and expanded rigidplastic foam supports having a corrugated shape which mates with thecorrugations of the panels.

2. Prior Art It is known to assemble pallets from corrugated paperboardhaving paper facings to which blocks of rigid plastic foam have beenadhesively attached. Such a pallet is disclosed, for example, in US.Pat. No. 3,380,403 granted Apr. 30, 1968, to M. A. Sullivan. However,various problems arise with pallets using a combination of corrugatedfiberboard decking without a facing and plastic or foam supports. Whileplastic foam has suitable qualities for filler and reinforcementpurposes, it lacks the rigidity and strength required for palletdecking. On the other hand, paperboard and fiberboard with longitudinalcorrugations has substantial rigidity in the longitudinal direction butlacks rigidity in the lateral direction, i.e., at right angles to thedirection of the corrugations.

Another disadvantage of prior art pallets composed of corrugatedfiberboard decking without facings and conventional flat top runner orpost-type supports is the difficulty of providing a secure attachment orfastening between support member and deck member because of therelatively small amount of flat surface available on the corrugated decksheet. Accordingly, despite the conventional use of rather strongadhesives between the support posts and the corrugated deck, the postsare vulnerable to separation from the deck when struck by the liftingforks or prongs of a fork-lift truck.

It is, therefore, a principal object of the present invention to providea new and improved combination corrugated deck and plastic foam supportpallet.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a lightweightpallet comprising one or more corrugated decks having plastic foamsupport members attached thereto in a completely rigid and securemanner.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Briefly describing the present invention, theabove and still further objects and advantages of the invention areachieved in pallets which may be of single deck or double deck design.Each deck is a corrugated panel or sheet which is preferably composed offiberboard or hard plastic to render it of light weight in comparison topresently used pallets, such as those composed of wood. However, othermaterials may be utilized to produce the corrugated deck, as will be setforth in the ensuing description of preferred embodiments. According toa principal aspect of the present invention, support members which areprimarily composed of rigid expanded plastic foam are shaped to conformto the corrugated deck or decks, at least at the points of proposedattachment thereto, such as by providing flutes in the foam posts orrunners to match the corrugations in the deck and thus to mate withthose corrugations. By providing a matching corrugated shape on one orboth of the major faces of the support posts or support runners, apositive interlocking securement is assured between post or runner, anddeck. Moreover, such an arrangement assures greater transverse orlateral rigidity, that is, resistance to forces directed at right anglesto the corrugations of the deck sheet, in the plane of the sheet.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the corrugatedfiberboard deck sheets are partially or completely filled with expandedrigid plastic foam, or other similarly suitable material, to provideincreased rigidity, particularly in the lateral direction, and toprovide a greater amount of support surface, which may be a flat surfaceif the corrugations have been completely filled, for improved stackingof car tons and packages on the pallet deck. Such fill-in can beachieved by any of several conventional methods such as molding or sprayoperations. Moreover, a complete filling-in of the corrugations to suchan extent as to provide a slight coating over the peaks of thecorrugation flutes accomplishes waterproofing of the fiberboard panel,which is a significant advantage in instances where the pallets may beexposed to severe weather. This is of utmost importance where the palletis composed of materials such as paperboard or fiberboard, offering theadvantages of light weight over prior pallet compositions, but incapableof retaining strength when exposed to water or extreme moisture.

A further advantage of pallets of the present invention is that thepallets may be assembled directly by the user, from molded supportcomponents and pre-cut corrugated fiberboard deck sheets suppliedseparately. Assembly may then be performed as the pallets are required,using adhesives or other suitable fastening means. Alternatively, thepallets may be assembled during manufacture by molding or cementing thesupport post directly in position, to the corrugated fiberboard decksheet, and the assembled pallet then shipped to the user.

It is therefore a further object of the present invention to provide alight weight, inexpensive and expendable shipping and storage pallet,which combines the use of corrugated panels and rigid plastic foamsupport posts or support runners constructed to mate with the decks orpanels at the proposed points of attachment.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide morereliable fastening of support runners or support posts of expandedplastic foam to corrugated deck sheets than has been achieved in theprior art, by use of support or runner members having flutes on one orboth major surfaces (i.e., those surfaces which are to be in ahorizontal orientation when the pallet is in use) to provide aninterlocking fit with the corrugations of the deck sheet.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a strong,light weight, and waterproof pallet in which a rigid foam is utilized tofill in the corrugations of a fluted panel or sheet member.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a light weightcorrugated deck pallet with provisions for plastic rigid foam fill-in ofthe panel corrugations on an optional, variable and diversified basis,from a standpoint of the depth of the fill-in and the panel coveragerequired to provide the necessary strength, rigidity,

load capacity, water resistance and smooth surface. if any, deemedessential for the intended pallet use.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In describing the preferredembodiments of the present invention, reference will be made to theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. I is an exploded, perspective view of a single deck palletaccording to the present invention, employing a corrugated panel andslotted support runners with matching flutes, assembled for four-wayentry of the lifting prongs or forks of a fork-lift or pallet-lifttruck, the top deck panel showing a typical partial fill-in of the uppercorrugations with rigid foam;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, section view taken along the lines 22 of acomplete single deck pallet of the type shown in FIG. 1, illustratingthe interlocking fit of the support runner and deck members;

FIG. 3 is an exploded, perspective view of another embodiment of asingle deck pallet similar to that shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, showing thetop deck upper corrugations having another pattern of filled-in rigidplastic;

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the assembled single deck pallet of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is an exploded, perspective view of a double deck palletembodiment similar to the single deck embodiment of FIGS. 3 and 4,except that the support runners are provided with fluting at the secondmajor face of each, to mate with the corrugations in a second completebottom deck or in the bottom deck runners;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary, section view taken along the lines 6-6 of FIG.5, illustrating the interlocking attachment of both decks to the supportrunners;

FIG. 7 is an exploded, perspective view of another double deck palletembodiment, utilizing support posts or blocks between the corrugateddecks or deck runners rather than support runners, and with thecorrugations oriented at right angles to one another for the two decks;

FIG. 8 is an exploded, perspective view, partly in phantom, of stillanother double deck pallet embodiment utilizing support blocks, in whichthe corrugations in the decks have been partially or completely filledin, and in which the blocks are also composed partially of corrugatedpanels, with the corrugations in the blocks extending perpendicularly tothe plane of each deck member;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary, section view of a partially filled-incorrugated panel of the type used in the pallet of FIG. 8; and

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary, section view of another form of corrugatedpanel with more angular corrugations than that of FIG. 9 and in whichthe corrugations have been completely filled in and the peaks of thecorrugations coated slightly to weatherproof the deck members.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Before describing the preferredembodiments of the present invention, it is desirable to point out thewide variety of constructional materials which may be used in thefabrication of single deck and double deck pallets according to theinvention. Suitable corrugated panels may be composed of fiberboard,paperboard, aluminum or other light weight metal, rigid plastic, or

any other light weight material of relatively high strength. Thecorrugations in the panels, of course, provide additional strength andrigidity over planar decks, to support greater loading normal to theplane of the panel or parallel to the orientation of the corrugations,but offer relatively little rigidity in a lateral or transversedirection, i.e., at right angles to the orientation of the corrugations.

A suitable plastic foam for use in fabricating the support runners orsupport blocks is an expanded polystyrene foam, although compositionssuch as hollow polystyrene or plastic heads in a cementitious mass. orof loose sawdust, wood particles, etc., in a rigid cohesive composition,may alternatively be employed.

Referring now to FIG. I, a single deck pallet I0 ac cording to thepresent invention comprises a deck member or panel 12 of corrugatedconstruction, and a plurality of support runners, preferably three innumber, designated l3, l4, and I5, spaced equally apart at the undersideof deck member 12. The panel 12 is composed of any of the materialsdescribed above as being suitable, and the support runners are eachcomposed of any of the rigid foam-like materials specified above. Theupper surface of each of the foam support runners, l3, l4, and 15, isprovided with flutes or wrinkles 17 matching the corrugations in panel12, so that these flutes may be interlocked with the corrugations in theunderside 18 of panel 12 after flutes l7 and matching portions ofunderside 18 have been coated with a suitable adhesive to fasten thesupport runners to the deck.

As shown in FIG. I, the top deck I2 illustrates one pattern, i.e.,striped 98, whereby rigid plastic foam is introduced into the uppercorrugations of the top deck 12. The level of fill-in may be sufficientto completely cover the flutes or may be partially below. In thismanner, additional rigidity is added to the upper deck 12.

The assembled single deck pallet in which the support runners arefastened to the underside of the deck member is shown in fragmentary,section view in FIG. 2. The lower surface 20 of each support runner isflat, so that when the single deck pallet I0 is completely assembled, alevel lower support surface is provided to permit the pallet to restupon any flat surface, such as a loading platform or the ground, withlittle or no rocking. Cartons, crates, boxes, or other packages areplaced on the upper surface, or load side, of panel 12, and the spacingbetween the support runners and between the underside of deck member 12and the surface on which the entire pallet rests is such that the prongsor forks of a fork-lift or pallet-lift truck are readily insertedbeneath the deck member to permit lifting the palletized load from anyone of the four sides of the pallet.

While support runners, each of a length corresponding to the width ofdeck member 12, are utilized to support the deck in the embodiment ofFIG. 1, it is to be emphasized that block or post support members mayalternatively be used as will be shown in some of the embodiments of theinvention to be described presently. The use of nine support posts, eachhaving an upper surface composed of matching corrugations to those onthe underside of deck member 12, with one post positioned at each cornerof the deck member, another post at the mid-portion of each side of thedeck member, and the last post positioned at the center of the deckmember, will provide adequate support for materials placed on the loadside of the pallet, and will permit four-way entry of the prongs of thefork-lift truck.

The four-way entry, single deck pallet is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 3.Referring to those figures, the overall pallet is provided with a deckmember or panel 12 of corrugated configuration, with or without fill-inof plastic foam in the flutes 25, and with a series of equally spacedsupport runners 13, 14, and 15, each having an upper surface 17 withflutes matching the corrugations 18 in the underside of panel 12. Thesupport runners have each been interrupted with two cutouts or slots 23and 24 in the lower surface 20 thereof, the slots extending in the samedirection as the corrugations, i.e., longitudinally. When the supportrunners are fastened in interlocking spaced-apart relationship to theunderside 18 of deck 12 by adhesive cement or other suitable fasteningmaterial, the slots 23 in each support member are aligned, as are theslots 24 in each support member, as shown more clearly in the bottomview of the assembled pallet in FIG. 3. Since the support runners are ofone-piece construction, there is greater transverse rigidity andassurance of a level under-surface than would be present if severalindividual support blocks or posts were employed. However, it is againemphasized that support posts may be utilized rather than runners,without departing from the spirit of the invention. It will be observedwith regard to FIGS. 1 and 3, that since the slots 23 and the slots 24are aligned in the individual support runners, the prongs of thefork-lift may be inserted therein in the assembled pallet to lift thepallet and the load supported thereby, from any of the four perimetersides of the pallet.

Referring now to FIGS. 5 and 6, a double deck pallet embodiment is shownwhich uses several elements similar to those utilized in the single deckembodiment in FIGS. 1 and 3. In particular, the double deck pallet 30includes an upper deck member or panel 12 which is again of corrugatedconstruction, with or without partial or full fill-in of plastic foam inthe flutes 25, a plurality of equally spaced support runners I3, 14, and15, again of expanded rigid plastic foam molded so as to provide anupper surface having flutes or wrinkles 17 matching the corrugations 18in the underside of deck member 12. As in the embodiment of FIGS. 3 and4 for a single deck pallet, slots or channels 23 and 24 are provided inspaced-apart relation in the bottom surface of each runner, oriented inthe same direction as the corrugations and so arranged that when therunners are fastened to the underside 18 of deck member 12, the channels23 and 24 permit entry of the prongs or forks of the fork-lift truck ineither direction parallel to the orientation of the corrugations, inaddition to entry into the channels formed between the runnersthemselves. Hence, four-way entry is also provided in this embodiment.

Unlike the embodiment of FIGS, 3 and 4 however, the bottom surface ofeach of support runners 13, 14, and in the pallet of FIGS. 5 and 6 isprovided with corrugations 31, preferably during the molding process forthe support runners, so as to match corrugations in a similarly orientedset of deck runners 33, 34, and 35. While individual deck runners 33,34, and 35 are shown in FIG. 5, it should be apparent that a singlecomplete bottom deck, similar to the upper deck 12, may be provided atthe under-surface of the support runners, as viewed in FIG. 5, withoutdeviating from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Moreover,

a single complete deck, if used at the bottom of the double deck pallet30, or the separate deck runners 33, 34, and 35, may be arranged suchthat the corrugations extend in the lateral direction, rather than thelongitudinal direction conforming to that of the corrugations on theupper deck member. Thus, for example, the individual deck runners wouldbe turned by in such an arrangement and the flutes 31 in the bottomsurface of each of the support runners 13, 14, and 15 would also extendtransversely to the orientation of the flutes 17 in the upper surface ofthose support runners.

A fragmentary portion of the completely assembled double deck pallet 30of FIG. 5 is shown in FIG. 6, clearly indicating the interlocking fitattained between the flutes in the upper and lower surfaces of thesupport runners and the adjacent corrugations in the upper and lowerdeck members 12 and 34, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 3, another optional pattern showing use of basically anarrow band design designated as reference numeral 99 may be providedfor the upper deck of the pallet according to the present invention. Asbefore, the extent of fill-in with rigid foam plastic material may besufficient to completely cover the corrugations or may extend to belowthe surface of the flute.

A double deck pallet embodiment utilizing the longitudinal andtransverse alignment of corrugations in the upper and lower deckmembers, and illustrating still another feature of the presentinvention, is shown in FIG. 7. Referring to that figure, the double deckpallet 45 includes an upper deck member 47, i.e., a panel or sheet, ofcorrugated construction, which is to be in the uppermost position whenthe pallet is used in its load supporting condition. As in the previousembodiments, the upper support panel 47 has an underside 48 and aloadside, but in this example, the corrugations in the loadside arecompletely (or partially) filled with rigid plastic foam to provide alevel support surface 50. Moreover, instead of support runners such ashave been shown in the preceding embodiments, the embodiment of FIG. 7utilizes support blocks or posts 5], having flutes in both the uppersurface 53 and the lower surface 56 thereof. The support posts or blocks51 are arranged with one at each corner, one at the central portion ofeach side, and one in the center of the underside of upper panel 47, theflutes 53 mating with the corrugations 48 in the upper panel. Flutes 56in lower surface of each support block are oriented at 90 relative tothe flutes 53 in the upper surface of each block to mate withcorrugations in a set of deck runners 58, 59, and 60, which extendlaterally to the corrugations in the upper panel 47. Each of the deckrunners has the corrugations in its exposed side, here the bottomsurface, filled either partially or completely with a plastic foam 64.In addition to providing additional resistance to forces exertedlaterally to the orientation of the corrugations in the plane of thedeck member, the tiller plastic foam serves to insure a level supportsurface for the load, and for resting against a level loading platformor other surface on which the double deck pallet 45 is to be placed. Byorienting the corrugations in the upper and lower deck members inperpendicular directions, the overall pallet achieves greater strengthand rigidity than would otherwise be the case.

Referring now to the embodiment of a full double deck pallet shown inFIG. 8, a pair of deck members of identical construction are provided,each consisting of a corrugated panel 75, the valleys of which on eachside have been partially or completely filled with plastic foam toprovide surfaces 77 and 78, respectively. As in the embodiment of FIG.7, the corrugations of one deck member may be oriented at 90 relative tothe corrugations in the other, if desired, although parallel orientationhas been shown in FIG. 8 for purposes of example. The significantdifference between double deck pallet 70 of FIG. 8 and the double deckpallets of the preceding embodiments is that the support blocks orposts, here designated by reference numerals 80, while again aligned inthree rows of three blocks or posts each, also include corrugated sheets82 and 83 between which the plastic foam is sandwiched, and which mayalso be partially or completely filled in along the exposed sidesurfaces with foam. Corrugations 82 and 83 are oriented normal to theplane of each deck. As shown in phantom lines for support post 81, thecorrugated sheets may be provided at all four side surfaces of thesupport block, as at 82, 83, 84, and 85, with the sheets stapledtogether at the corners provided that a material such as fiberboard orpaperboard is employed. The presence of corrugated sheets in the supportposts supplies the overall pallet with greater compressive strength, sothat double deck pallet 70, for example, is capable of carrying heavierloads than double deck pallet 45 of FIG. 7. As in the previousembodiments, the double deck pallet of FIG. 8 is assembled by adhesivelyfastening the support posts in place to each of the upper and lower deckmembers 75.

It is to be emphasized that while the support posts or blocks are shownto be of rectangular cross-section, that is essentially immaterial tothe practice of the present invention. For example, the post may be ofcylindrical construction and, in fact, may be tubular in form with ahollow center. Other shapes, such as diamondshaped cross section, arealso suitable.

Referring now to FIGS. 9 and 10, each of these figures is a fragmentarysectional view of a deck member taken along a plane perpendicular to theorientation of the corrugations, and respectively showing the partialand complete filling of the corrugations on both sides of the deckmember with a rigid plastic foam. In FIG. 9, the rigid foam 90 extendsfrom the bottom 92 of the valley between corrugations to a point belowthe associated pair of peaks 93. This provides greater strength andrigidity in the lateral direction. In FIG. 10 a somewhat more angularembodiment of the corrugated deck member is shown but, of course, theprecise construction of the flutes or wrinkles is immaterial to theprinciples of the present invention, and the two different forms areshown merely by way of example. In any event, the plastic foam 95 inFIG. 10 completely fills each corrugation and extends slightly over thepeaks 97, thereby forming a waterproof or water resistant coating on thefiberboard or paperboard deck members. as well as improving itsrigidity. Of course, this is not of particular concern where the deckmember is composed of light weight metal or plastic, but the completefilling of the corrugations with foam will provide a relatively levelsurface for loading in these instances as well, and this may be ofimportance in some situations as where relatively small packages are tobe loaded on the pallet.

Where a load is unitized or containerized" for shipment and handling byforklift and pallet lift trucks, e.g., a number of packages or items areto be loaded and packed in a single pallet size container, such largecontainer may have a pallet or platform type base comprising a fullcorrugated deck or corrugated runner members, with support posts of foamplastic attached to the bottom wall of the container. For example, withreference to FIG. 7, the full deck member 47 or runner bot tom membersare arranged to be placed at the bottom against the surface on which theload is to rest, with the foam blocks or posts 51 projecting upwardlyfrom the corrugated members to which they are fastened. Each of theposts is provided with a fluted bottom surface mating with thecorrugated deck or runner members and a flat top, as shown by thephantom lines 100, to provide with the flat tops of the other posts, alevel surface against which the bottom wall of the unitized containermay rest. These flat surfaces are attached to that wall and thecorrugated deck or runner members, by use of adhesives or other means.The single unitized load may thereafter be lifted and transported by afork-lift or pallet lift truck, by insertion of the prongs into any ofthe four entry-ways between the corrugated deck or runner members andthe bottom of the container.

It should be observed that in none of the preceding embodiments of theinvention in which plastic foam filler is used between corrugations, isit necessary to provide a complete fillin. For example, thin strips ofplastic foam may be applied at relatively uniform inter vals along thecorrugated panel, at an angle to the ribs or flutes (e.g.,perpendicular). I have found that such plastic foam strips, spaced atfrom four to six inch intervals, provide almost the lateral strength andplanar rigidity (as well as level surface character) of the completelyfilled-in panels, although they do not serve the overall waterproofingfunction of the complete fill-in. Where the corrugated deck sheet ismolded from plastic or other moldable compounds, such spacedapart crossflute fill-in may be molded integral with the corrugated panel deck, inlieu of incorporating later by other means. Where the spaced-apart crossflute fill-in is added to an existing corrugated deck sheet, such fillinmay comprise strategically located spot fill-in or individual fill-instrips extending the width of the deck sheet at a right angle to thedirection of the deck corrugations. Such longitudinal strips are flutedon the bottom surface for mating with the deck corrugations and have aflat top surface that extends just above the top edge of the flutes ofthe corrugated deck. Such strips are preferably formed and attached tothe corrugated deck by spraying, or the strips may be molded andattached to the deck corrugations by use of adhesives or other means.

Preferably, in each embodiment of the present invention the distancebetween adjacent peaks of the corrugations is one-half inch to l inch,although this is not essential to the practice of the invention.

While I have disclosed several preferred embodiments of my invention, itwill be apparent to those skilled in the art to which my inventionpertains that many variations and modifications are possible withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention, as defined in thefollowing claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A four-way entry pallet comprising:

a. at least one corrugated upper deck member having a top side and anunderside;

b. rigid plastic foam filler filling in at least a portion of each ofthe flutes of said top side corrugations to provide added strength andrigidity to said upper deck;

c. A plurality of spaced rigid plastic support members adhesivelyfastened to the underside corrugations of said upper deck, each of saidsupports having at least the top surface corrugated to mate with therespective corrugations of said underside corrugations of said upperdeck;

d. each of said plastic supports being elongated members having an upperportion extending the length thereof, leg portions depending from saidelongated upper portion spaced apart to form slots between saiddepending legs to permit entry of prongs of a forklift trucktherethrough.

2. The pallet of claim 1 wherein said support leg portions includecorrugations at their bottom surface, a

bottom deck spaced from said top deck having a top side and anunderside, the top side having corrugations to mate with said supportleg bottom surface, said support legs being adhesively secured to saidbottom deck upper surface.

3. The pallet of claim 1 further including a plurality of spacedelongated strips adhesively secured to the bottom surfaces of aplurality of support legs.

4. The pallet of claim 2 wherein said bottom deck includes rigid plasticfoam filler in at least a portion of each of the flutes of saidcorrugations to provide added strength and rigidity to said lower deck.

5. The pallet of claim 1 wherein the deck and support members areseparately provided in a kit with adhesive for on-the-site assembly.

1. A four-way entry pallet comprising: a. at least one corrugated upperdeck member having a top side and an underside; b. rigid plastic foamfiller filling in at least a portion of each of the flutes of said topside corrugations to provide added strength and rigidity to said upperdeck; c. A plurality of spaced rigid plastic support members adhesivelyfastened to the underside corrugations of said upper deck, each of saidsupports having at least the top surface corrugated to mate with therespective corrugations of said underside corrugations of said upperdeck; d. each of said plastic supports being elongated members having anupper portion extending the length thereof, leg portions depending fromsaid elongated upper portion spaced apart to form slots between saiddepending legs to permit entry of prongs of a forklift trucktherethrough.
 2. The pallet of claim 1 wherein said support leg portionsinclude corrugations at their bottom surface, a bottom deck spaced fromsaid top deck having a top side and an underside, the top side havingcorrugations to mate with said support leg bottom surface, said supportlegs being adhesively secured to said bottom deck upper surface.
 3. Thepallet of claim 1 further including a plurality of spaced elongatedstrips adhesively secured to the bottom surfaces of a plurality ofsupport legs.
 4. The pallet of claim 2 wherein said bottom deck includesrigid plastic foam filler in at least a portion of each of the flutes ofsaid corrugations to provide added strength and rigidity to said lowerdeck.
 5. The pallet of claim 1 wherein the deck and support members areseparately provided in a kit with adhesive for on-the-site assembly.